New Economic Spaces for Job Creation in Diepsloot

Riversands Incubation Hub is a public-private partnership between Century Property Developments and National Treasury's Jobs Fund under the infrastructure window. The infrastructure investment funding window aims to co-finance light infrastructure projects that unlock job creation potential in an economic sector or geographical area. Riversands Incubation Hub was established to stimulate local and inclusive economic development and job creation within the Diepsloot and surrounding areas by facilitating access to world-class physical infrastructure and business incubation support.

The development is situated in Johannesburg, adjacent to luxury residential estate Steyn City with four-car garage homes and a stone's throw from the marginalised township of Diepsloot, lies Riversands Incubation Hub. The comparison is stark. Inequality and high unemployment are pressing issues in South Africa, and Diepsloot reflects what is happening in the country. In most cases, employed residents spend an average of 40% of their salary on transport costs making job retention low. Businesses have always been located in different areas because of associated expenses like rent and infrastructure. This prevents integration and the ability of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and established businesses to leverage each other's resources and capabilities. The primary barrier to large-scale industry using SMMEs is quality, security of supply, compliance with quality standards and cost. These challenges can be linked to apartheid spatial planning, which created profound structural infrastructure disadvantages for townships. In Diepsloot and the surrounding area, the road widths, power availability and size of stands limits the scale of manufacturing, entrepreneurship and economic development in general.

The purpose of the grant was to establish Riversands Incubation Hub's physical infrastructure and incubation programme. The Hub's incubation programme nurtures small and micro enterprises from Diepsloot and Johannesburg as a whole by mentoring and supporting them to become fully-fledged, formal businesses. Emphasis is on small and micro enterprises that fulfil a market demand. The goal is to attract SMMEs that will provide goods and services at quality and price levels that make them an asset to any company supply chain. The Hub's location within the commercial park and its entrepreneur-friendly terms de-risks the inherently risky entrepreneurship venture. This in turn expands economic participation and job creation in Diesploot and the broader surrounding area.

Riversands Incubation Hub has learned that the combination of quality infrastructure and entrepreneurship catalyses job creation. However, the Hub's scale and diversity come with a level of complexity. This complexity is further exacerbated by the Hub's ongoing desire to create a local developmental and enabling ecosystem that is sustainable. Some key lessons include:

Project Highlights

https://www.riversandsihub.co.za/